Forget the complicated paper instruction guides provided when purchasing a piece of furniture or an accessory to assemble. The SME Synod wants to revolutionize, and above all simplify, the formula with the use of 3D visualization and augmented reality. Already, the doors to the international market are open to it.
Posted at 1:38 a.m.
Updated at 10:00 a.m.
Marie-France Létourneau
Special collaboration
In addition to improving the customer experience, the technology developed by the young company allows manufacturers to document, internally, the assembly or maintenance processes of their products. Synode has, among other things, worked with BRP on its new range of electric motorcycles.
“We innovated by building a platform that makes it as simple as PowerPoint or Canva,” explains Eddine Alimat, co-founder and CEO of the company Synode, located in Magog. We have created a very fluid interface that allows anyone to create complex animations in just a few clicks. »
The guides produced in 3D can be accessed from any device using a QR code, a URL link or web integration.
It didn’t take long for the company to get noticed. She was invited by the Canadian Technology Accelerators (ATC), with six other young startups, to Retail Tech 2023, organized in New York. It also won an export award from Carrefour Québec International.
The foundations for Synod were laid in 2021, when Eddine Alimat, 34, worked at Plogg, a digital commerce company in Magog.
The prototype of Synode’s software was also produced for a Plogg client, the E-Solutions Furnitures group, born from the merger of two furniture manufacturers, one in Quebec, Bestar, and the other in the United States. -United, Bush Industries.
Rapid growth
“When we launched our prototype, we very quickly had customers in the furniture and construction sectors,” explains Eddine Alimat.
“We collaborated with the National Research Council of Canada,” he adds. This allowed us to be in contact with several companies in the manufacturing and technology sectors, and to have visibility. »
Mr. Alimat, who studied computer and software engineering at university, teamed up with one of his colleagues at Plogg, Denis Lajoie. The duo joined the Magog Technopole incubator. And Synod was quick to stand on its own two feet. The young company was officially created in early 2023.
The two partners dipped into their personal savings to launch the business. The income from their sales, as well as research and development assistance programs, subsequently allowed them to refine their technology, for which patent procedures were launched.
PHOTO MAXIME PICARD, LA TRIBUNE ARCHIVES
Eddine Alimat, co-founder and CEO of Synode
But we very quickly saw that to ensure growth, we must move on to the next stage. We are finalizing the final details of a $700,000 financing round to grow and gain market share here and internationally.
Eddine Alimat, co-founder and CEO of Synode
Synode, which currently has eight employees, has the wind in its sails. According to Mr. Alimat, the young company is talking with Japanese and European manufacturers wishing to adopt Quebec technology for their operations.
The entrepreneur also thinks big for his business. “In five years, Synode will be the world reference in the creation and sharing of content in three dimensions and augmented reality,” he is convinced.
